Country’s first agri cabinet in MP meets on June 18

The first agricultural cabinet in the country, formed by the Madhya Pradesh government under chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, will hold its first meeting on June 18.

Coincidentally, monsoon would have arrived in the state by then. In the first effort of its kind, Chouhan has carved out a cabinet specially focused on agriculture from the existing cabinet, enjoying the cabinet’s powers.

The chief minister will head the agricultural cabinet, and principal secretaries of 10 farming-related departments will assist him.

“Agriculture will continue to be the lifeline of the country. We have created this cabinet to strongly underline its importance,” Chouhan said. Besides being a soyabean hub, MP is third in the country’s wheat production after Punjab and Haryana.

The first meeting of the state’s agricultural cabinet in Jabalpur will discuss steps to prevent farmer suicides, save the fertility of land, etc .

“MP is in far better a situation as compared to Punjab, Haryana and western UP, where the disillusionment from Green Revolution is for all to see. The land there has lost fertility. Village after village are up for sale,” said former director of agriculture department GS Kaushal.

“Farmers from these states are coming down to Madhya Pradesh, buying land for farming. In Raisen, Hoshangabad and certain other districts, a good number of farmers are settled now.”

Agriculture minister Ramkrishna Kusmaria said decisions taken at the cabinet meet would involve all the departments related to agriculture, hence, there would be speedy implementation of the projects and disposal of files.